Means for feeding metal sheets.



0. DEMPEWOLF.

MEANS FOR FEEDING METAL SHEETS.

APPLIGATION FILED SEPT. 8,1910.

1,027,598. v Patented May 28,1912.

d I 5 wuyz z 7 found by experiment UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE OTTO:onMrEwo F, or BRUNSWICK, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR To BREMER & BRJ'L'ICK MANN,0F BRUNSWICK, GERMANY.

MEANS FOR FEEDING METAL SHEETS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, OTTo DnMPEWoLr, of

the city of Brunswick, Germany, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Means for Feeding Metal Sheets, of which the followingis afull, clear, and exact specification, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. 7

My invention relates to a means for feeding one at a time sheets ofmetal from a pile of such sheets.

The invention has various applications, but its most important use is inconnection with or has parts of a machine for manufacturing tin cans inwhich the tin sheets are fed one at a time to the forming devices.

The object of my invention is to insure the delivery of but one sheet ata time and avoid two or more passing out either 'di-' rectlysuperimposed or overlapped. I have that the sheets tend to adhere toeach other and this makes the operation difficult. I accomplish thepurpose in view by providing means which cause the moving sheet to beflexed in one several directions, thus separating it from V the othersheets somewhat in the manner that printers flex the top sheet of a pileof paper in the act of separating that sheet from thepile.

My invention involves various other fea tures of importance, all ofwhich will be fully set forth hereinafter and particularly pointed outin the claims.

Reference is nowhad to the accompanying drawings which represent, as anexample, the preferred embodiment of my invention.

In these drawings-Figure 1 is a front elevation of a magazine with thetable in section; and Fig. 2 is a section on the'line Of Fig. 1. i

a indicates the magazine in which, the sheets I)- are superimposed. Theconstruc-' tion of the magazine as well as various of the otherparts'may be variediwidely without departing from my invention. 'Thedrawings indicate the magazine in outline merely. Below the magazinev isthe feeding tableQc withflsuitable devices-for engaging and advancingthe sheets one at a time.

These devices are here shown as slides (Z operating in guideways e andhaving slide Specification of Letters Patent. Application filedSeptember 8, 1910. Serial No.

' Patented May 28, 1912.

shoulders f projecting above the surface of the feed table a to engagethe sheets one at a time. Of these slides 03 2 are shown in thedrawings. N 0 means for driving the slides are shown, as this forms nopart of my in-, vention. The projecting shoulders f of the slides shouldbe of sufficient extent to engage only one sheet at a time.

9 indicates astop bar which is held to the vertical discharge'end of themagazine by any suitable means, for example, the rods k of the'drawings.This stop bar projects down to the point magazine and it is preferablyrounded at its lower end as shown in Fig. 1. I also prefer slightly toround the inner side of the stop bar at its lower extremity as shown inFig. 2. Under thelower end of the stop bar and fastened on the table 0or formed integral therewith is a flexing projection 2'. This isseparated from the lower extremity of the stop bar for a spacesufiicient to permit the discharge of a single sheet. The said flexingprojection z' is rounded transversely as shown in Fig. 1 and it taperslongitudinally from the end within the magazine to its highest point asshown in Fig. 2. Said flexing projection extends from the point underthe stop bar inward well into the magazine.

In the operation of the device the sheets lie on the inner end of theflexing projection and they are flexed in two directions by the same,namely, they are flexed longitudinally of their line of movement bytapering in the projection 2' in a longitudinal direction and they areflexed transversely of their line of movement by the transversecurvature of said projection 2'. Therefore when the bottom sheet isengaged by the shoulder f, and drawn forward the sheet is given a seriesof diverse flexureswhichtend to sepa rate it effectually from the sheetabove and prevent the adherence which would other-j wise interfere withthe movement of the sheet. This flexing takes place principallyinlowermost or moving sheet and, the sheets above being stationaryare'limperceptibly flexed. This condition 'is advantageous to I havedescribed. described and prefer .to

the operation which 'I have'shown and employ plurality of directions,but 7 this is not strictly essential to my invention, since flex meansfor flexing the sheets in a ing in one direction only is but a matter ofdegree.

Having thus described my invention What I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. The combination with means for holding and feeding, one at a time,from the bottom of a pile of metal sheets, of a projection in the pathof the moving sheet to flex the same during its movement, for thepurpose specified, said projection tapering in two crossing directionsto produce a plurality of fiexures in the sheet.

2. The combination of means for holding a stack of sheets and means foradvancing the sheets one at a time from the bottom of the stack saidholding means having a projection upon its supporting surface and partlydisposed beneath sald stack so as to 20 hold the bottom sheet flexed orbent transversely of the direction of movement of said sheets as theyare fed from the stack.

3. The combination of means for holding a stack of metal sheets saidmeans presenting a substantially flat supporting surface and aprojection intermediate the side edges of said surface and curvedtransversely and normally disposed beneath an edge portion of the stackand means upon the opposite side of said projection for advancing thesheets one at a time from the bottom of the stack and over saidprojection.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of tWo subscribing Witnesses.

OTTO DEMPEWOLF.

WVitnesses ERNST Mnvns, FRIEDRICH BRANDES.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

